Bottle-washing machine.



' C. E. FELT.

BOTTLE WASHING MACHINE.

APPLICATION FILED APR. 1. 1909.

Patented Apr.' 23, 1912.

SHEET 1.

2 SHEETS y Ma-'2676551252' C. E.- FELT.

BOTTLE WASHING MACHINE.

APPLIGATION P11131) APRA, 1909.

Patented 111111.23, 1912.

-2 SHEETS-SHEET 2.

ff f 77 1 UNITED ,srrArEsI A4'PATENT oFFIoE.-

cHARLEs E. FELT, or CHICAGO, ILLINOIS.

Specification of Letters Patent.

, 1e o'rrmiTWASIIINGf MACHINE.'

' bottles on either the insideor outside while a cleansing solution is injected.

The invention has for its primary object to provide improved and simple means for carrying the bottles to a position'where they will be engaged by the cleansing brushes and receive the cleansing solution, and after 4, which has an aperture 5 directly over each being thus operated upon, conducted out of the way to make. room for others. y

YVith a View to the attainment of these ends and the accomplishment of certain other` objects which will hereinafter ap.

pear, the invention consists the'vfeatures of novelty which will now be described in connection withthe accompanying ,drawings, and then moreV particularly pointed out in the claims. l

In the said drawings Figure 1 is a vertical longitudinal sectional view of' a bottle washing machine constructed according to this invention, and. Fig. 2 is anend view thereof. K y f The bottles 1 to be washed are placed in pockets or holders bottom sidejup,.fas' indicate'd in Fig. 1, and these pockets or holders, any desired number of which and preferably a multiplicity of which are' employed, are connected together in preferably an endless series forming an endless belt conveyer, and pass the point where the bottles are operated upon by the brushes or other cleansing devices. These holders may be constructed in any suitable way. In the eX- ample of the invention shown in the draw` ings, they are arranged to project inwardly from the endless conveyer traveling ina vertical plane and so constructed and proportioned that when a bottle with a tapering neck is placed in an inverted position in a holder traveling under' an upper horizontal portion of the conveyer, the shoulder or body of the bottle will be limited in its downward movement-by a ring or collar 2 which is suspended by hangers 3, from a bar belts 6,

' of the collars 2. In practice it is desirable to employ a great multiplicity of these pockets, and to that end it isdesirable that the bars 4 be as long as possible, consistent with good mechanical construction, and supported transversely of the machine in as close relation to one another as feasible.

cally opposite links of two .endless chain which are' supported and travel Patented Apr. 23, 1912. Application filed April 1, 1909. serial Np. 487,121.

These bars are secured at their ends to diametri-- around four pairs of sprocket wheels 8, 9,

10, 11, journaledin a suitable frame l2 on shafts 13, 14, 15, 16', which connect .them together 1n pairs.

With the machine in the position shown in Fig'. l, the bottles to be washed are inserted 4 in their pockets thus constituted on the j Chain. 1081158 6, 7, vat the left hand end of the machine, as each of the bars 4 rises to an appropriate' position, and while being thus supported neck downward, they are conveyed to the cleaning devices.

ment', causing them to move eachtin1`e a definite distance sufficient to carry oneseries of bottles away from the, cleaning devices and present a new series to their action. To

this end suitable mechanism, such as apair f pawls 17, is arranged to'engage with the chains at some advantageous point, prefe'ri In orderA that the bottles while being -so held in their ably with the rollers 18 which are journaled i onthe pivot'pins at each end of each link flections o-n side rails or tracks 19 mounted land serve ,the further useful purpose of 4 supporting the chains against downward de-` upon the frame 12 or other support. These pawls -17 are pivoted respectively to the -upper ends of two levers 20 which are ful'- suitable means, such as springs 25 to engage another one of the rollers 18.

At veach revolution of the. i

' chine of that type in which the bottles are ed by a chutev 29 of suitable form into the carried on inclined pockets or4 supports 26* mountedv upon a conveyer chain or belt 27, and from which thev bottles are vadapted to slide automatically after they. pass below a retaining guard 28, whence they are directapertures 5 of the bars 4 as'the latter rise to the discharging end of the chute 29. If desired, the bottles may be retained in the chute 29 until the apertures5 come into actual register therewith by any suitable detent 30 pivotally mounted and held in the path of the bottlesby a springl until tripped out of said path by pins or lugs 32 on the bars 4 striking a trigger 33, which overcomes the resistance of the spring 3l and compels the detent 30 to release the bottles. When the lug 32 passes, the spring 31 again returns an arm 34 of the 1 detent V against a stop 35, which positions the detent to-receive and hold-a new supply of bottles.

Arranged to register with the rows of bottles where they stop at the conclusion of the movement of the pawl 17 are one or more 'rows of devices for injectinga cleansing fluid into the bottles and brushing them. ,Therev are many forms of' devices for this purpose.v

The example of the same shown in the drawingszas an element of this combination is the type in which the mouth of the bottle is engaged by a cup-shaped coupling memberv or clamping cap 36 having astem 37 which A'forms a guide for a hollow spindle 38 having its upper end, where .it enters the guide,.

split to. form tentacles for scrapingl or brushing the interior ofthe bottle as the spindle 38 is projected upwardly through the guide 37, while the cap 36 is in contact with the neck of the bottle to prevent the cleansing fluid injected through the hollow spindle j from escaping. The caps 36 are arranged j in groups and normally positioned below the positions assumed by the lmouths of the bottles when being operated upon byV the cleaning device. VThere are as many hollow f Y spindles 38 employed .inthis machine as there are apertures 5 in each of the bars 4,

so that all; of the-bottles'in each row as `they 'stop inline with the spindles will be simul` taneously operated upon,.and if it is desired,

l Aadditional-rows of the spindles 38 may be provided so that'when the bottles leave the first. row of spindles to give place to the next row of bottles, the first row lof bottles 4will go over a second row ofrspindles,l andthen over a third, and so on, as often as the rows 4vof spindles are repeated throughout the travel of the convey/er; In this example of or other suitable elastic means.

the invention, butthree rows-.of the spindles have been shown, the row-referred to as 38 i being the first-the row indicated. at 38 be-y ing the second vand 38h,v being the third. These spindles 38, 38a and 38b receive their supplyfof cleansing fluid from a chamber-39 mounted upon or forming a part of a .frame A 40 which isI provided with as many conical nipples 4l as there are spindles. Engaging with these nipples v41- areshafts 42 whose lower ends are fu-nnehshaped for. the purpose, and whose upper 4ends are'v connected .with the spindles 38, and eachof these shafts is provided with adriving means, such as a gea'r wheel 43, all of these being in train, and the end one of the train driven by a gear 44 on an upright shaft 45 which reV ceives its rotation from power shaft 46 con-- nected with the shaft.l 45 by bevel gears 47, 48, whereby the spindles will be rotated vwhile the cleansing -fluid is passing therethrough.

The frame 40 which' carries the shafts. 42 and spindles 38 is vertically movable together with the gear wheel 44, which is splined on a shaft 45, so as to receive its'rotation regardless of its position' on the shaft, it being carried with the gears 43 by suitable projections 49, 50 ori the frame 40, as

shown in Fig. l. This causes the split ends of the spindles to project into the bottles as said ends emerge from their guides 37. As the frame 40 rises with the spindles, the coupling members or caps 36 are forced up wardly out of their normal positions into engagement with the'bottles by springs 51, This is brought about by giving these springs 51 a supportgupon lugs'52 projecting inwardly from' frame members 53 and supporting -the caps 36 upon the springs. Any suitable mechanism may be used for thus supporting the capsf36, but it is preferable to employ a plate or platform 54, which takes its support directly'upon the springs and is provided with as many cages 55 as there are guides 37, andinto each of which cages projects one of the guides.- Each cage is also provided with a spring or other cush ioning member 56 inserted in the bottom thereof and engaginguunder the cap 36, this spring 56 being preferably coiled around vthe guide 37 soas to 'give each of the caps a vpulled downwardly away from the bottles by heads 57 on rods 58, which are secured to the frame 40 and project upwardly through the lugs 52, constituting guides therefor. These 'rods also extend throughthe coil springs 51 their adjusted normal positions to relieve andholdthelatterin place. -ThreframeilLOmay undue pressure against the bottles. The be thus elevated for causing the spindles to upper and lower groups of the clamping project into the bottles by any suitable caps are thus made adjustable in their ad- -means In this example of the invention justed normal positions relatively to each 70 each end of the frame is connected to the other. lower end of one of a pair of. chains or other I claimiiexible members 59,' which pass upwardly 1. In a ma'chine for the purpose described, over sheaves and arefconnected to two the combination with an endless beltl conlo 'levers 61 respectively. The -`lattera're pivotveyer, of bottle holders carried by said con- 75 ed at 62 to theframe'lQand are arranged veyer, means for imparting intermittent to be engaged respectively by'two cams 63 motion to said conveyer, cleaning devices aron the shaft '22.5 These cams, however, as ranged to act upon the bottles at their pewel] as the levers 6l, are arranged out of riods of rest, a plurality of coupling caps '19V the planes 'of the cams 2l and levershQO, so below the bottle holders, and a plurality of 80 'that the operation of the levers Q0 and 61 Caps above the bottle holders for resiliently' will alternate, the construction and timing clamping the bottles therebetween during ,being such that after the earns 2l cause the the Operation'of the cleaning device, a cross bottles to move into position over the spinbar from which said caps abovethe bottle dles, the cams 63 will lift the frame 40, as holder are'suspended resiliently, andvnieans 8, before vdescribed,.an i permit it to descend for. adjusting both ends of said cross bar againbefore the cams 2l again come into simultaneously with respect to the coupling operation. caps belowthe bottle holder.'

The frame 40 which Carries the internal 2. In a machine for the purpose described, 57j spindles is shown with additional spindles the combination o f an endless belt conveyer, 90

@Il carrying brushes 65 so positioned as to bottle holders projecting inwardly from the engage thebottles on their exteriors and inner face of the conveyer, said holders bey brush these surfaces, while the interiors are 111g adapted v'0 Carry the bttleS Inverted beng operated upon, Abut these external with their bottoms substantially flush with brushes are not material to the present iiith Outer face of the conveyery'means vfor 95 "'vention. After the bottles have been thus de hvering bottles endwise t0 Said holders, acted upon andpass laround the pair of "Stud means bemg Opelable by .621011 0f ,Slld Sp-rockets'llthey may*v be removed from the holders, cleaning devices coperatively repockets of the -carrier by hand, or allowed' lated t0 and encompassed by theeenveyer, 35. to fall out by gravity.- If the latter 'method and means `for alternately imparting move- 100 be employed, it is desirable to arrange a ment'to said conveyer and actuating said shield in position to keep 'thebott-les in Clelnmg deV1CeS- the pockets until they arrive at a1 chute 66 3. In a machine for the purpose described, sufficiently low down to insure their autothe combination of an endless belt conveyer, 40 matic discharge. As the caps 36 rise and bottle' holders projecting inwardly from the 105 engage the bottles, they of coiirse exert a inner face of the conveyer, said holders betendency to lift the same out of their pocking adapted to carry the bottles inverted ets on the carrier, and to the end that this with their bottoms substantially flush with lifting tendency may be resisted, it is de-l the outer face of the conveyer, mea-ns for 5 sirable to arrange over each row of bottles delivering bottles endwise to said holders, 110 being acted upon a/series of clamp-ing caps said means comprising a chute, a plurality 67 arranged in groups and equal in number of pockets downwardly inclined -for dis- Ato the number of bottles in each row and charging bottles by gravity, and releasable adapted to engage the bottoms of the botmeans for retaining the bottles in said pock- O:.tles respectively. Each row of these caps is etsuiitil said pockets and bottle holders are 115 Amounted upon a cross-bar G8 supported by in'register, the last said 'means being opertransverse bars 69 serving to, connect all ated by said endless belt conveyer to release three of the bars'68 together. Each end of the bottles from said pockets. c Q the central bar G8 is provided with anut 4. In a machine for the purpose described, `5 70 screw-.threaded upon upright screws 71 -the -combination with an endless conveyer 120 mounted on A'the side trames of the machine .for bottles arranged in a vertical plane, Said 4 in suitable bearings and provided with bevel conveyer -being adapted fto vreceive bottles gears 72 engaging with companion gears 73 'endwise in inverted position, ofl means for on a cross-shaft 74 having a crank 7 5 whereautomatically feeding the bottles endwise 60 by it may be rotated for causing all of the thereto, said means comprising a chute ar- 125 Jcaps' 67..to,rise or descend to adjust their ranged adjacent the conveyer, a second con normal positions relatively to the coupling veyer adapted to feed the bottles endwise caps 36. The caps 67 are provided with 4under gravity to said chute, `and provided .cui 'Wing means, such as springs 7 6, which with means for controlling the feed of said 6" peini nein .to be' forced resiliently from bottles, and means operated by the first said 130 ,'matically releasing said bottle detaining.

conveyer for automatically operating said feed controlling means. A

5. In a machine for the purpose described the combination of an endless Series of bottle holders, means for imparting intermittent travel thereto, cleaning:T and rinsing devices for engaging the bottles while held in said holders, a feed chute arranged adjacent said holders for feeding the bottles thereto7 means for temporarily detaining the bottles in the feed chute, and means operatively related to the said series of holders for autoinnerace of the conveyor, said holders being adapted to ,carry the bottles inverted With their bottoms substantially flush with the louter face of the conveyor, means for delivering bottles endvvise to said holders,

tent means for temporarilyv detaining bottles in said chute, and means carried by each bottle holder for operating said detent means to release a bottle.

In testimony whereof I have signed my name to this specilication, in the presence of two subscribing witnesses, on this 29th day of March A..D. 1909.

oHARLEs E. FELT.

VWitnesses: V

J. H. JooHUM, Jr., C. H. SEEM. 

